Below is my plan in its entirety:
Introductory
Lesson for Steinbeck’s The Grapes of
Wrath
Grades:9 - 12
Subject:
Language Arts (The Grapes of Wrath)
Key Goal / Enduring Understanding:
During the Great Depression, poverty was widespread. People from the Central United States (the dustbowl) faced severe droughts, and many relocated to California to work as migrant workers, where living conditions were often intolerable, and poverty remained inescapable. The Grapes of Wrath focuses on these migrant workers.
Essential Question:
What historical situations or economic conditions relate to the setting and characters in The Grapes of Wrath, and how can we relate to those conditions today?
Learning Standards:
NETS Standards:
2. Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others.
3. Students apply digital tools to gather, evaluate, and use information.
NCTE Standards
1. Students read a wide range of print and non-print texts to build an understanding of texts, of themselves, and of the cultures of the United States and the world; to acquire new information; to respond to the needs and demands of society and the workplace; and for personal fulfillment. Among these texts are fiction and nonfiction, classic and contemporary works.
6. Students apply knowledge of language structure, language conventions (e.g., spelling and punctuation), media techniques, figurative language, and genre to create, critique, and discuss print and non-print texts.
7. Students conduct research on issues and interests by generating ideas and questions, and by posing problems. They gather, evaluate, and synthesize data from a variety of sources (e.g., print and non-print texts, artifacts, people) to communicate their discoveries in ways that suit their purpose and audience
8. Students use a variety of technological and information resources (e.g., libraries, databases, computer networks, video) to gather and synthesize information and to create and communicate knowledge.
Learning Objectives:
Students will know and be able to:
Describe the historical background that relates to The Grapes of Wrath.
Compare the migrant situation in the 1930’s to current events.
Utilize The Internet to locate information that applies to the lesson.
Report on their discoveries, and explain their feelings about said information.
Technology Uses:
Students will utilize The Internet to research background information regarding The Grapes of Wrath. They will submit a brief report on their findings electronically, and see their findings illustrated in a word cloud on the Smart Board.
Evaluation:
Students will receive points based on the structure and content of their brief written report, as well as on class participation and discussion.
LESSON PLAN
DESCRIPTION
Introduction
This lesson is meant as a pre-reading introduction to The Grapes of Wrath, which will allow
students to gain historical perspective prior to reading the novel. The lesson
will use interactive websites, as well as other technology within the
classroom.
Glogster is an interactive poster-making application, which can be
used to create interactive web pages, which link to outside websites, pictures,
or other media in an eye-catching and attractive format.
Wordle is a word-cloud creating utility, into which text can be
inputted, and formed into a cloud that sizes words according to the frequency
of their use in the text. Wordle is useful for identifying major subjects or
themes in a piece of writing in a visual way.
Lesson Focus
This lesson will focus on the use of technology to obtain
information, analyze information, and recompile information into alternate
forms in order to better analyze said information.
·
Students will initially be directed to a premade Glog at
Glogster.com, where they will have access to a variety of information in the
form of links and embedded media. Four questions will be listed on the Glog,
which the students will be expected to respond to in a Word document, and
submit electronically via a drop box. All information needed to answer the
questions will be available by following links on the Glog. Students will complete
this portion of the assignment as homework.
·
After submission of word files, there will be a class discussion
in which each student will be expected to informally share one interesting
artifact they found in the course of the homework assignment.
·
The teacher will cut and paste the students’ paragraphs about
their artifacts into Wordle, and create a word cloud to display on the Smart
Board in class.
·
Based on the words appearing in the word cloud, the teacher will
lead a class discussion about the features and historical significance of the
1930’s, which is the setting of The
Grapes of Wrath.
·
Students may be asked to create their own individual Glogs or Wordle
word clouds in a future assignment to further their familiarity with those
utilities.
Lesson Design
– Minimal Technology
·
If students’ access to The Internet is limited, the teacher will
show brief YouTube or historical videos during class, and provide students with
a small number of handouts from which to work, as well as an image of the
premade-Glog.
·
Alternatively, students may be assigned class time to work on this
project, and class may be moved to the school media center or a computer lab if
more computers are necessary. Students may be then assigned to work in groups
of two or three.
·
Rather than submitting work electronically, it may be submitted in
hard-copy form.
Lesson
Activities Using Technology
·
The students will utilize The Internet and Glogster.com to locate
information and assorted media.
·
The students will submit their written assignment electronically
to the teacher.
·
The students will view a compilation of all their work in the form
of a Wordle word cloud on the Smart Board.
SOURCES:
This lesson
plan is an original creation by Sarah Burgett.
Premade Glog located at Glogster.com:
Wordle word cloud making utility located at:
REFLECTION STATEMENT:
The task of creating a technology-integrated lesson-plan seemed daunting when it was first given to me. After completing the project, I feel more confident that I can create lesson plans! Lesson plans are important, because they require a teacher to sit down and consider what he or she wants his or her students to get from a lesson. Without them, it would be far too easy to fritter away time with students on projects or assignments that are not effective for their learning. I look forward to creating more lesson plans, but I also find myself a bit scared, and wondering how, when I first start out, I will possibly be able to create a lesson plan for each and every class. I know that once I have all these plans created, though, that it will get easier, and I will be able to simply integrate new lessons in with old ones, or update lesson plans each year.
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